The much suppressed animosity between Lagos state governor, Akinwumi Ambode and his predecessor, Raji Fashola was going to be full-blown.

Last week, it became a subject of public knowledge.

Inside details of how Fashola, Ambode fell out


By Olumide Olaoluwa …

It was always a matter of time.

The Lagos State Public Procurement Agency posted a report on its website stating that N78.3m was paid to a firm, Info Access Plus Limited, for the upgrade of Fashola’s website through the Office of the Chief of Staff to the Governor.

The move, it was gathered, was sanctioned By Ambode to give the public a clear picture of alleged financial atrocities committed by his predecessor.

Fashola left a whopping N430billion debt for the new administration as against the N15billion he inherited from Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

It was also learnt that Fashola had spent over 70 percent of the 2015 budget projection of the state as at the time he handed over on May 29.

A document obtained by Ripples indicated there was a domestic debt of N69.666 billion; N225 billion debt from bond issuance and N207.499 billion from external loan from foreign bodies.

It also indicated that the internal loans from commercial banks “have tenors of four to six years, while the multilateral financing agencies including the World Bank, French Development Agency and others, are on concessionary borrowing terms, such as 20 – 40 years tenor and average of 1.75 per cent per annum interest rate.”

On the bond, the document showed that the state government under the immediate past governor issued a bond of N275 billion, though N50 billion had been paid from the total sum in 2014, thus leaving a balance of N225 billion.

On the domestic debt, the document stated Fashola incurred about N69.666 billion, indicating that the Ambode administration “is expected to pay N14.27 billion this year; N13.68 billion in 2016; N34.68 billion in 2017 and the balance of N6.85 billion in 2018.

“On the overall loan, the mode of payment is that Ambode would pay N15.96 billion in 2015; N16.796 billion in 2016; N48.57 billion in 2017 and N10.644 billion in 2018. The debt will be serviced the remaining debt with N59.313 billion in 2019 and N86.54 billion in 2020 as the remaining N180.397 billion would transcend beyond 2020.”

The development was said to have angered Ambode, who reportedly protested to close aides that he was being set up for a big fall.

The duo, it was gathered, have not seen since the hand-over or even had a formal or informal exchange, a development said to have been a fallout of the deep-seated animosity between them. While Fashola believed that Ambode was imposed to rubbish his achievement, his successor is alleged to have insisted that Fashola was determined to financially cripple his administration hence the huge debt he left behind.

Sources close to Ambode confided that the governor is bent on exposing the shady ‘deals’ under Fashola though it was gathered party officials are said to be prevailing on him to have a change of mind because of the possible backlashes on the All Progressives Congress(APC).

Ambode is particularly said to have been irked that Fashola has a larger-than-life perception rating in the public, contrary to the alleged financial recklessness under his nose.

Fashola, on his part, is banking on the fact that as the poster boy of the APC, he will be insulated from any probe or exposure.

Investigations revealed that the recent online campaign on the N78million website management fee under Fashola was one of the strategies to cut the former governor to size.

It was further discovered that several other mind-boggling revelations on his stewardship will be released by the current administration to rock the boat.

Already, civil society groups have been mobilised to petition anti-graft agencies on the reported financial misdemeanor under Fashola’s watch.

Two of them have already approached the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to demand for investigation against the former governor.

Meanwhile, Fashola, has defended the decision of his government to spend N78.3m on the upgrade of his personal website, www.tundefashola.com.

The former govenor, in a five-page letter on Thursday, admitted that the money was actually spent on his website, but that the breakdown of the transaction was left out and was the cause of the confusion.
He said, “One of the services was an upgrade quoted for N12.5m but awarded for N12m.

“There were other services that were new like a handover countdown clock, mobile Apps for Google, for IOS and Ipad, for Microsoft and for Research in Motion (Blackberry), which the existing website did not have, as well as the annual maintenance cost for managing the website.

“It was for all these services that the contract was issued for N78m, which the Lagos State Procurement Agency gave no objection based on the advice of the Ministry of Science and Technology, who are the government’s adviser on ICT matters”.

Fashola stated that the website helped him to do his job effectively when he was governor, and that “It is regrettable that a summary of the contract has been deliberately distorted to misinform the public”.

The former governor hinted of an alleged plot by some unnamed individual to smear his name.

He said for instance, there were allegations of having extra-marital affairs and having children outside marriage.

Fashola, also reacted to criticisms on the over N419bn debt his administration left behind, noting that all the loans taken by the state were approved by the House of Assembly.

He said the debts were being serviced, adding that the debt profile of the state had not affected it negatively.

Fashola berated human rights group, Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders, for dragging him to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and calling on President Muhammadu Buhari not to give him a political appointment.

He said he did not care if he was given a political appointment or not as he had served Lagos State for over 12 years.

Photo: Ambassador Dalhatu Tafida Bows Out

Alhaji Dalhatu Tafida, the longest serving Nigerian Ambassador to the UK bid his final farewell to the staffs of the embassy yesterday as his tenure ends!

Nigeria: Kaduna gov cancels school fees, promises free food, uniforms

From September, students attending public primary and secondary schools in Kaduna state will get it all for free, with free food and uniforms as well, according to Governor Nasir El-Rufai.


Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai (Get it right Nigerians)

Kaduna state governor, Nasir Ahmad el-Rufai (pointblanknews)

Come September, students attending public primary and secondary schools in Kaduna state will get it all for free, with free food and uniforms to boot.

Governor Nasir El-Rufai made the promise at the weekend during a town hall meeting held in Zaria.

“From September your children will attend schools for 9 years free of charge," the governor said.

"We intend to provide uniform, feeding in our primary and junior schools in the state.

"There will also be no more PTA fees in our schools.”

It will be recalled that the past governor of the state, Ramalan Yero, had in the build-up to the 2015 gubernatorial elections described El-Rufai, free education promise as ''laughable' and 'insulting'.

"It is so laughable for somebody whose children already school in United Kingdom (UK) because you don't believe in the system here. Because you had the opportunity of taking your children there," Yero had said through his spokesperson, Ahmed Maiyaki.

"This is laughable, insulting for somebody to imagine that he will provide free education or his children will come back to public schools when he does not even have children that will attend school right now."

With the recent announcement, it then seems El-Rufai is determined to fulfil his campaign promises.

Nigeria: President Buhari Needs to Play the China Card Too

President Muhammadu Buhari

The much hyped visit of President Muhammadu Buhari to the United States of America last month is fast fading off public discourse. Thanks to the short attention span of public debate in Nigeria. Thanks also to the seeming mismatch of expectations and outcomes from that high-level diplomatic interface. To be fair, the president brought back home promises and a supposed list of former corrupt public officials from whom stolen funds stashed abroad would be retrieved hopefully.

But he also returned home with tales of obstacles which stop the US from equipping Nigerian troops battling boko haram in the frontlines of the North-east. He also came back without any firm commitment on any form of economic cooperation and assistance. A popular consensus of opinion built on the trip is that the Washington moments with President Barack Obama and other high-ranking US officials were either under-utilized or just simply under-performed like highly rated stocks. Bad-mouthed cynics even described the visit as mere photo-ops with the US President.

But now is time to move on and catch up with some other friends. I am not saying Nigeria should ditch the US but the country cannot afford to look aloof in the face of American obduracy and exaggerated tokenism. The Buhari administration will do well to open its doors and extend its hands to friends from elsewhere except of course, its apron strings are irretrievably tied to Uncle Sam. The field of play is open and big. And among a few others, China is out seeking for playmates. Or more suitably, hoping to consolidate on Sino-Nigeria relations built over past years.

In July 2013, former President Goodluck Jonathan returned from a state visit to China with a $1.1billion low-interest facility for infrastructure development in Nigeria. An economic and technical cooperation pact was also signed between both nations. Jonathan’s 4-day visit included hordes of officials like ministers, state governors, bureaucrats and technocrats which enabled the signing of agreements and consummation of outlays and implementation timelines thereby ennobling the trip with productive results which somewhat made up for the much criticised inclusion of some lay-about hangers-on in the delegation. The loan covered funding for airport upgrade in select cities, light-rail projects, road construction, hydro-power plant as well as investment in oil and gas infrastructure. Hitherto, Chinese companies had already secured road construction contracts across Nigeria estimated at $1.7billion.

In 2013 the trade volume between both countries stood at almost $13 billion, according to former Chinese ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Deng Boqing. This figure was said to be double what was recorded four years ago and by last year, it had exceeded $16 billion in 2014. In the first half of this year, the Nigeria-China Business Council (NCBC) put the volume of bilateral trade at about $23.5 billion. This exponential increase in trade volume over a period of time has affirmed China as the third largest trading partner of Nigeria. Here is a progressively productive relationship that satisfies the national interest of both countries at least, to some extent.

However, while China is treating Nigeria to an increasingly profitable economic relationship, the same can hardly be said of the United States. This is hardly a fault of the US to be fair. The advent of shale oil has become a reason for a decline in the volume of trade between both countries as the US has halted the importation of crude oil from Nigeria. And this has necessarily put the latter on the negative side of the balance of trade.

Statistics from the first half of the year for instance indicate that exports from the US were higher than imports from Nigeria. In terms of figures, the U.S exported about $1.billion while it imported stuffs valued at $615 million in the period under review. Compare this to the value of US imports put at over $2.4 billion during the same period in 2014 and then back track to 2011 when the value of imports stood at $30.5 billion while exports from Nigeria was $4.9 billion. While the US can alter its trade priorities with Nigeria and any other country for that matter owing to changing economic realities, there are other viable avenues to sustain a mutually rewarding relationship.

Counter-terrorism and the fight against Islamic extremism is one area which has been on the front burner of both countries’ cooperation radar but where unfortunately, quite little gains have been recorded. No thanks to the Leahy law enacted by the US. There are also other areas of cooperation like strengthening of democratic institutions, the electoral processes and promotion of human rights in which Washington could rev up its assistance to Nigeria in addition to the much that have been done.

Without having to ditch old alliances and traditional friendships, the need to look more to China is a pragmatic step already started by Buhari’s predecessors especially Jonathan and the late president Musa Yar’Adua. The latter had moved to open up the upstream oil and gas industry to Chinese operators before the downturn of his health condition and eventual demise in 2010. Recall that the Yar’Adua administration reportedly opened lines of communication with the China National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC) in a bid to buy large stakes in some profitable oil blocks in the country valued around $30 billion. This step placed the Chinese company in the competitive league of top American and European oil multinationals like Shell, Exxon Mobil, Chevron and Total which have operated almost unchallenged in the vast and resource rich oil fields of Nigeria.

For Western powers, this was not something to joke about and be taken with kid gloves. And to multiply the goose pimples on their skin, a close ally and Economic Adviser to the late President, Tanimu Yakubu was quoted in a Financial Times report to have endorsed the CNOOC bid, saying the Chinese “are really offering multiples of what existing producers are pledging (for licenses). We love to see this kind of competition.” Some analysts submitted that this was one move that put the West on their toes and jolted them into more desperate relations with Nigeria, especially post-Yar’Adua.

It needs to be stated that like every other state player on the international scene, China’s gestures may not be altogether altruistic. Its interest in Nigeria and indeed Africa at large may not be unconnected to the intrinsic drive of a world super power to expand its sphere of influence in relation to other competing powers. And Africa being basically a backwater continent aptly provides a scrambling ground for both Eastern and Western power blocs to test the strength of their foreign policies. When China pledged $20bn in credit to Africa at a Summit in Beijing in 2012, Chinese President, Hu Jintao said increased Sino-African relations was needed to defend against the “bullying” of rich. “We should oppose the practices of the big bullying the small the strong domineering over the weak and the rich oppressing the poor,” Hu had told his visiting African Heads of State.

In spite of the propensity of nations to pursue selfish national interests under the guise of benevolent foreign policies, there is the need to deliberately oil the existing relationship with China from the Abuja end. Especially and more urgently so if America and the West in general keep pussy-footing on stated commitments. Like a Chinese saying goes, Nigeria should not try to borrow combs from shaven monks.

THISDAY

Man kicked out by wife after tattooing six-and-a half inch penis on his thigh

He’s got that for life (Picture: SWNS)

A man previously dubbed the ‘world’s most annoying husband’ has been kicked out by his long-suffering wife after he tattooed a gigantic penis on his own leg.

Stuart Valentino, 34, inked the six-and-a-half inch phallus on his left thigh – so the end pokes out of his boxer shorts.

But the questionable tattoo is the latest in a long series of pranks that wife Samantha has endured – and she has now given him the boot from their family home in Southsea.

The father-of-four said: ‘My wife hates it. In retrospect, I’m not surprised, it really is the stupidest thing I’ve ever done.

‘After I did it, my wife woke up in the morning screaming, because there was this massive penis poking out of the duvet. And the tattoo on my leg.

Oops (Picture: SWNS)

‘It caused no end of rows and she’s now kicked me out of home. I deserve it, I suppose.’

The tattoo gun that Stuart used for the questionable inking was given to him as a Christmas present by his wife.

She has now banned her husband from taking his daughter swimming and the family was forced to postpone plans for a holiday – because the inking stands out when Stuart wears shorts.

Describing the effects of the crude inking on his family life, Stuart added: ‘We argued non-stop. It would cost nearly £1,000 to remove, something that could have been spent on a family holiday. 

‘Finally last month, Samantha announced she couldn’t take it any longer, and left me.

‘I had no idea that a joke could ruin my life. I’m devastated I’ve lost my family, and frustrated with myself. I can’t blame anyone else.

Stuart has been kicked out by wife Samantha (Picture: SWNS)

‘I have a constant reminder poking out of my shorts every day of how stupid I’ve been.’

Stuart was previously dubbed the ‘world’s most annoying husband’ – after posting a series of pranks on YouTube, which see him spend the whole weekend slapping his family with a fish, making his wife vomit after pretending to eat cat poo, and drawing a monkey face on his sleeping wife’s bottom.

Metro

Sport: Platini warned me of prison if – Blatter

FIFA president Sepp Blatter has alleged UEFA counterpart Michel Platini warned him he faced prison if he did not withdraw from the world football governing body’s presidential race.

Speaking exclusively to Dutch newspaper de Volkskrant, Blatter claimed the warning, in which Platini allegedly said Blatter would go to jail if he did not withdraw from May’s FIFA presidential race, was made to the Swiss official’s brother.


FIFA President Sepp Blatter

But a source close to Platini, contacted by AFP, described the claim as “ridiculous”.

Blatter said he found his 80-year-old brother Peter crying at the FIFA congress in Zurich in May, where the 79-year-old Blatter was re-elected for a fifth FIFA term, before later vowing to step down and hold new elections.

“During lunch, Platini had sat down at my brother’s table and said: ‘Tell Sepp to withdraw from the election or he will go to prison’,” said Blatter.

Blatter claimed the exchange happened before the elections but his brother only told him about it afterwards.

“This complete fabrication is the latest in a series of attempts from Zurich to distract everyone from the problems FIFA is confronted with,” a source close to Platini told AFP.

“The UEFA president will not dignify these ridiculous allegations with a response.”

Blatter continued his claims by saying he felt betrayed by Platini, 60, who is the favourite to succeed the Swiss in February’s new election.

“You know, there was a time when our relationship was like that of a father and his son,” said Blatter.

“He worked for me for four years at FIFA, after the 1998 World Cup in France. Together we prepared his board memberships of both UEFA and FIFA. In 2007, he also became president of UEFA, with my direct support.”

Blatter said Platini has “changed” but that he does not know why the UEFA chief, a former France international player and coach, should have turned against him.

“You will have to ask him about his character. I don’t know what goes on in his head,” said Blatter.


Although Blatter was re-elected, despite a corruption scandal engulfing the whole process after seven FIFA officials were arrested over accusations of bribery, the Swiss announced four days later that he would resign.

“The mounting pressure on me and FIFA left me no other choice. I was faced with a tsunami,” said Blatter.

“It was a shock. It was not an easy decision to take, but it gave me time to think about what had gone wrong.”

The source close to Platini said the Frenchman is concentrating on rehabilitating FIFA’s reputation following the corruption scandal rather than responding to allegations from Blatter.

“Michel Paltini is currently more concerned with the preparation… of a programme to restore the image and reputation of FIFA,” said the source.

Vanguard News

Letter: My wife’s sister is a seductress

Google Image

I am in a dilemma and I pray I won’t fall prey. I also don’t know if I am the one over reacting. I don’t know how to handle this situation, please, help me.

I am 42, a father of two boys, happily married, though I cannot say I am a saint, but I know my limits. Few weeks ago, my wife needed to travel out of the country for training. We needed someone to help with the care of our boys especially now that they are on holidays. I have no one from my family who can help and since my wife’s youngest sibling who is a student in one of the private universities is on holidays too we asked her to come over and help with the boys.

I never knew we invited trouble. She came two days before her sister left, but after my wife’s departure, I noticed a different sister-in law. She would dress in provocative dresses and swing her waist. Sometimes, she looks at me to see if I am looking at her. I started avoiding her by coming home late and she would look for excuses to come into my room at ungodly hours.

I am surprised; this is a girl who practically grew up before my eyes. The most tempting thing is that she looks so much like my wife, her younger version. Please, how can I handle this situation?

Anonymous.

Reply:

Dear Anonymous,

Your level of discipline is very commendable. Some men would have taken the advantage and this could in turn destroy a lot of other things.

Since you are yet to fall for her advances, I will implore you to do all you can to avoid doing so. You stated that she is quite young and you watched her grow, then, I am sure you can call her and talk sense into her.

Although, this could be difficult as it seems you are already getting attracted to her, hence the perceived resemblance to your wife, but please, do not fall for it. Call her; let her know you understand her play, but that you are not interested. Sometimes, confrontation works; if this doesn’t, threaten to report her to her sister or anyone you know she respects. You don’t have to avoid her by coming home late. You must also tell her not to invade your privacy by coming into your bedroom. Be careful.

If she doesn’t change, you could ask her to take the boys to your mother-in-law’s, if she is available. At this point, I feel you can still handle the situation, but if need be, let your wife know and please, pray against temptation.

Culked from Tribune NG

Queen claimed ‘someone must have greased the brakes’ on hearing of Princess Diana’s car crash

Queen Elizabeth and Princess Diana are said to have had an ‘extraordinary and complex’ relationship

By Sian Harrison

The Queen claimed ‘someone must have greased the brakes’ in reaction to hearing about Princess Diana's car crash Ingrid Seward’s new book, ‘An Intimate Portrait of the Queen in Her Own Words’, reveals

The Queen’s reaction to Princess Diana’s car crash was that ‘someone must have greased the brakes’, it has been claimed.

Diana was killed in August 1997, along with her boyfriend Dodi Fayed, when the car they were travelling in crashed in Paris.

As news of the accident reached the Royal Family, before it was realised Diana had died, Her Majesty reportedly issued the terse remark.


The shocking claims were made in Ingrid Seward’s new book, ‘An Intimate Portrait of the Queen in Her Own Words’.

The Royal biographer said the comment hinted at the ‘extraordinary and complex’ relationship between the two women.

Writing in the Daily Mail, she said: “At first it was thought that, though the car crash in the Pont de l’Alma tunnel was serious, Diana had not been killed

CCTV footage of Princess Diana leaving the Ritz hotel in Paris on the night of the accident PA

“According to one witness present when the Queen heard the initial news, she mused out loud: ‘Someone must have greased the brakes'.”

Diana’s untimely death triggered national mourning, and the Queen faced some initial criticism from the public for not leaving her holiday retreat at Balmoral and returning to London immediately.

There was also consternation over the refusal to fly a flag at half mast from Buckingham Palace.

Ms Seward wrote that the Queen was ‘bewildered’ by these criticisms, as the flag not being flown while she was not in residence was ‘mere protocol’.

She claimed the decision to stay in Scotland was made so the young princes William and Harry were given the chance to ‘absorb the shock of their mother’s death’ in private.

The Royal expert added: “Her first priority was to protect them.”

The Queen making a televised address following the death of Diana, Princess of Wales Rex Features

Her book also claims the Queen was initially very fond of the young Diana Spencer, writing to a friend that: “She is one of us.”

But Ms Seward said that, as the princess became nervous and the Queen’s concerns about the increased press attention grew, their relationship turned cold.

Diana and the Queen initially had a warm relationship Getty

She said the relationship was ‘brought into sharp relief’ by the publication earlier this week of new behind-the-scenes photographs of Diana’s wedding to Charles in 1981.

She added: “Despite the joyous occasion, there is little evident warmth between the two women or even a flicker of happiness on either face — a glimpse, perhaps, of their underlying anxieties and the great emotional gulf between two such differing personalities.

Ms Seward previously disclosed the Queen’s reaction to the crash in an earlier book, ‘The Queen and Di’, published in 2000.

The Telegraph 

Meet Caitlin: A Girl That Earns £130 A Week Eating Half-naked For Men Online

22yr old Caitlin makes up to £130 a week by eating 10,000 calories a day half-naked for men online.

“I love the way I look and I started actively putting on weight because it makes me feel sexy. My speciality is to rub and shake my belly for the camera.” she said

She dropped out of school at 18 to pursue this unusual career and it is now her full-time job. Her family, especially her mother, has been supportive. Caitlin has no plan of ever quitting as long as her health is not affected.

“My blood pressure is athletic perfection. But I do get out of breath going up the stairs or walking short distances” she said. “If my health became badly affected, I’d consider slowing down. But I love what I do and I have no plans” she added.

Tianjin, China, Explosion Area Evacuated as Death Toll Rises to At Least 104

Authorities ordered the evacuation of a 1.8-mile zone around the Chinese port city of Tianjin on Saturday as fresh explosions were heard and fires continued to rage — and the death toll rose to 104.

The new toll from Wednesday's huge blasts, at a warehouse storing hazardous materials, includes at least 21 firefighters, state media said.

Rescuers also found an additional survivor Saturday as authorities evacuated much of the area to clean up dangerous chemical contamination. Several additional small explosions rocked the disaster zone as the clean-up continued.

Police have, for the first time, confirmed the presence of deadly sodium cyanide — fatal when ingested or inhaled, the state-run Beijing News said.

Police and military staff were deployed at checkpoints leading to the explosion site, and helicopters were hovering above.

"I do feel a bit afraid," said construction worker Li Shulan, 49, when asked about the air quality. "It definitely doesn't feel good. As you can see our boss is making us wear masks."


A huge hole is seen at the core area of Tianjin blasts in this aerial photo. Xinhua

A retired environmental official told reporters that air pollution posed no risk. "At the moment, the (air pollution) does not pose much danger to those in the vicinity," said Bao Jingling, a former engineer with the city's environmental protection bureau.

Harmful substances could not be detected in the air from 17 monitors placed around the city, said Bao.

About 6,300 people have been displaced by the blasts, with around 721 injured and 33 in serious condition, Xinhua news agency said. Shockwaves from the explosions were felt by residents in apartment blocks miles kilometers away in the city of 15 million people.

About a dozen family members of missing firefighters tried to storm a news conference, angry at a lack of information about their loved ones.

"We have gone to each and every hospital by ourselves and not found them," said Wang Baoxia, whose elder brother is missing.

"There is no government official willing to meet us. Not even one," she said. Relatives said around 25 fire fighters they said were missing were young contract workers not part of official city fire brigades.

Media have said such fire fighters in China, often only on two-year contracts, lack training as new recruits.

The Telegraph

Deputy governor died in his sleep – Borno govt

Late Zanna

The Borno Government on Saturday announced the death of its Deputy Governor, Alhaji Zannah Umar Mustapha

Alhaji Usman Shuwa, the Secretary to the State Government, announced the death in a statement signed in Maiduguri.

“It is with deep sense of utter shock and disbelief but with complete submission to the will of the Almighty Allah that the Borno Government hereby announces the passing away of Alhaji Zannah Umar Mustapha, the Deputy Governor.

“He died in his sleep this morning (Saturday) in Yola, Adamawa, where he was to represent Borno Government at the convocation ceremony of Modibbo Adama University of Science and Technology, Yola.

“He was also scheduled to follow up on his earlier visit to Yola, in connection with the welfare of Borno citizens internally displaced as a result of the Boko Haram insurgency.

“His remains would be brought to Maiduguri for funeral at the Government House, Maiduguri, at 4p.m. Saturday, Aug. 15, the statement read.

It also quoted Gov. Kashim Shettima of Borno as expressing his heart felt condolence to the family of the Deputy Governor and the entire people of Borno for the irreparable loss.

Shettima appealed for prayers for the repose of the soul of the late Deputy Governor. (NAN).

Vanguard News

Corruption eating away at India ‘like a termite’ – Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi warned Saturday that corruption was eating away at India “like a termite” as he used an independence day speech to pledge his commitment to eradicating graft and poverty.

In an address from Delhi’s Red Fort, Modi sought to silence growing doubts about his leadership after key reforms stalled in a rancorous parliament session dogged by allegations of corruption involving some of his top lieutenants.

Modi, who has a reputation as a hardline Hindu nationalist, also warned against the “poison” of communalism in a wide-ranging speech that lasted for more than an hour.

But it was his comments on the dangers posed by corruption that drew most attention, including his admission that the problem went right to the top.

“I want to reaffirm that this nation will get rid of corruption. We can rid the country of corruption, we have to start from the top,” said Modi.

“Corruption is like a termite, it spreads slowly, reaches everywhere, but it can be beaten with timely injections.”

Modi’s speech comes after some of the most senior figures in his Bharatiya Janata Party became embroiled in corruption scandals, including Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj and the chief ministers of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh states.

The scandals have been particularly embarrassing as Modi’s election win last year was built in part on a pledge to clean up government after a series of scams under the previous Congress administration.

Modi said there had been no cases of money being siphoned off on his watch and that a new law on declaring income had led to the disclosure of around one billion dollars in hitherto hidden assets which will now be liable to tax.

Other economic reforms however have snagged in parliament, including a national sales tax that the government sees as crucial to firing up growth.

While the economy is growing at around 7.5 percent, it still needs to pick up pace to elevate the hundreds of millions of people still mired in poverty in the world’s second most populous nation.

– Power for villages –

The right-wing premier, who has been accused of being too close to big business, portrayed himself as a champion of the poor by promising to help farmers and lower-caste dalits, formerly known as untouchables.

Modi set a 1,000-day deadline for every village in India to get electricity, urging state governments which are responsible for power to ensure every community is finally linked to the national grid.

“Even after so many decades of independence there are 18,500 villages in India which do not have electricity,” he said.

“I appeal to the states and all other stakeholders to connect these villages with electricity system within 1,000 days.”

Frequently mopping his brow on a swelteringly hot day, Modi said he had striven to enable 170 million people to open bank accounts for the first time under a government-run scheme.

“The poor are at bottom of the pyramid of development and we have to strengthen the base of the pyramid. If they are empowered, no one can stop us,” said Modi who came to power in May last year.

Modi’s first August 15 address from the fort’s ramparts drew praise from across the political spectrum as he tackled issues such as sexual violence and a lack of toilets.

But 12 months on, problems are mounting up for the usually bullish prime minister and his opponents were in no mood to be generous this time round.

Manish Tewari, information minister in the Congress government, said Modi failed to address the corruption allegations raised in parliament, accusing him of lacking the “moral authority” to tell his lieutenants to quit.

“He didn’t tell the country in his lengthy speech why the entire session of parliament was wasted,” Tewari told AFP.

Mohan Guruswamy, who heads the Delhi-based Centre for Policy Alternatives think tank, said Modi had set himself an impossible task in pledging to completely eradicate corruption as it was endemic at every level of officialdom.

“The common man doesn’t care so much about people at the top gobbling up millions but they are concerned about whether a policeman or another government official is taking bribes from them,” Guruswamy told AFP.

“If that doesn’t stop, nothing is going to change.”

According to a new poll conducted for the private ABP television network, 59 percent of respondents feel Modi has not kept his promise of a corruption-free government.

Parents are suing a hospital for the maintenance costs of the 14-year-old daughter they tried to abort

Mr and Mrs Bellandi are suing their local hospital for failing to abort their daughter Elisa (Picture: Bellandi famil)

57-year-old Aurora Bellandi and her 58-year-old husband Giuseppe are attempting to sue their local hospital for a failed abortion… which happened 15 years ago.

The Bellandis, of Rimini, Italy, are asking for €1m (approximately £700,000) for ‘psychological trauma’ and maintenance costs for their now 14-year-old daughter, Elisa.

And most amazingly of all, Elisa is supporting them.

The unusual case, has just as unusual a back story.

Aurora was 43 when she accidentally fell pregnant with Elisa. The couple already had an older son and were worried about how they would cope financially, and what’s more, due to health complications (Aurora suffers from ovarian fibroma), doctors recommend she abort the child.

Giuseppe and Elisa are standing together on this (Picture: MailOnline)

The couple agreed to the procedure, but it was unsuccessful, and by the time they found out the pregnancy was too far along for them to try again.

In the end the pregnancy and delivery were so complicated, the couple were able to successfully sue the hospital for ‘physical harm to the mother’ winning €120,000 (around £85,000).

The birth and pregnancy were very problematic (Picture: Bellandi family)

But now they want more.

Giuseppe has been unemployed for five years and Aurora has sadly developed Parkinson’s disease, meaning the family are in dire straights financially.

Elisa as a baby with her older brother Marco (Picture: Bellandi family)

Giuseppe told MailOnline: ‘The doctors brought her into the world. They should provide for her study and indispensable needs until she is 18.’

‘We were told that we had had to have an abortion. Other couples who get pregnant get to decide if they will keep it or not. We didn’t get to decide anything. They told us – first “You’re pregnant and you must have an abortion”. Then, “You can’t have an abortion”. They decided everything. As they decided everything they should bear the responsibility.’

Elisa backs her parents 100 per cent (Picture: MailOnline)

But far from selfish or cruel, as their actions first seem, Giuseppe insists that they are taking this action for their daughter.

He explained: ‘I am not trying to become a millionaire. I just want enough for my daughter to be able to study. In Italy the children have to take on their parents’ debts when they die. I don’t want that for her.’

Giuseppe claims he simply wants the best for his daughter (Picture: MailOnline)

‘We will always try to do the impossible for her as she’s our daughter. To me, her mother and Marco [their older son], she’s our little queen. We try and make sure she wants for nothing. But we don’t have enough.’

‘The mistake wasn’t mine – so it’s not fair that I pay, even though, as you can see, my daughter is wonderful,’ 

Metro

97% Vs 5%: An Open Letter to President Buhari - Ifeanyi Baron

President Buhari

Your Excellency Sir, I write to you as a grossly disadvantaged Nigerian especially as you have so declared from far away USA during your last visit there. Let me start by saying that the USA is not the right country where a sitting President should make such inflammatory, misguided, needless and discriminatory remark that conveys vengeance against his own people simply because of their democratic choice. This singular declaration which only confirms what many have already known about your avowed dislike for the people that make up the 5% in your statement was a deadly fly in the fine ointment of your well publicised visit to the United States of America, a country that strongly believes in the equality of all men and women irrespective of their race, tongue, class, political inclination or religious belief.

As a grossly disadvantaged Nigerian, having hailed from the South Eastern part of this great country myself, I write you with a bleeding heart knowing full well that the next four years would be a total waste for fellow Nigerians who hail from that region and our South South brothers except for anticipated God’s continued intervention. At least, this much we can deduce from your statement in reference. Since that infamous statement, our disadvantaged position has been elevated to an official level with alacrity.

One then wonders what will happen to those who christened you “Okechukwu” with fanfare during your visits to the “disadvantaged” land in the run up to the last elections? What happened to the memories the Isi Agu attire you wore with relish while you courted the people for votes? Did you bear the name “Okechukwu” and wore the attire with one part of your heart while the other reserved punishment for us? Or is it that the Rochas Okorochas, Ogbonnaya Onus and Chris Ngiges did not have good enough people to recommend to you as (Senior) Special Assistants or even (Acting DGs) since none from the disadvantaged states have been appointed by you so far? If not for divine intervention that made some legislators go on a needless errand to the International Conference Centre, Abuja, for a non-existent meeting, and were there till the electoral proceedings ended in the Senate, without knowledge of what was going on despite advancement in communication tools, Ike Ekweremadu would not have emerged Deputy Senate President. Your party was also strongly against the emergence of Godswill Akpabio as Minority Leader while your intervention in the leadership crisis of the House of Representatives saw that no one from the South East was a principal officer despite the Speaker’s more fairly proposal for the distribution of offices to all regions. Need we say more?

You have predicated your 97% vs 5% stance on the percentage of votes you received from the “disadvantaged” regions but history has shown that this is not the case as you have always given the people especially Ndigbo the harsh and vengeful treatment even when you occupied offices that did not require their votes. For example, even when you did not need anybody’s vote to be appointed the chairman of the defunct Petroleum (Special) Trust Fund (PTF), what did you do for these disadvantaged states? Did you fare any better then than you are doing today? Before I am persecuted for sounding ethnic, let me remind you of what one Wale Adedayo, a Yoruba from Ijebu Ife, wrote about you in Sahara Reporters on 13th of November, 2010, in the run up to the 2011 elections: “As PTF Chairman, you were an ethnic champion with the way projects under your supervision were executed. The Lagos/Ibadan Expressway, Shagamu/Benin Expressway and their Ibadan/Ilorin counterpart became death traps because you deliberately ignored these national arteries of commerce and social mobilisation due to a myopic vision of ‘punishing’ the Yoruba Nation for standing up to Abacha.

The restiveness in the Niger Delta region would have been contained a bit if the funds under your supervision as PTF Chairman were used effectively to put in place good infrastructure in the oil producing areas, where you got the money from. Instead, between 80% - 90% of PTF activities were concentrated in the Nort-West sub-region, which is your home area. And in the South-East, the deplorable state of the roads there is more than enough proof that the PTF under your watch was more interested in other places. You did nothing there.”
Kindly reflect on this and consider how you want Nigerians, even generations unborn, to remember you long after you have left this world. The time to do the right thing is now.

Do not give the 5% appointments simply because the constitution say so but endeavour to tap into their wealth of experience and entrepreneurship just like you would be expected to do to the other regions to make Nigeria better for all of us especially when the disadvantaged regions produce the bulk of the wealth you shall be using to develop the more fancied 97% regions. It is absolutely uncharitable of you to put the north in a state of odium before other regions for decades to come as a result of your actions or inactions. Remember, the whole of Nigeria, and not just a part of it, is your constituency once you assumed leadership of the country. How you are remembered after your presidency is entirely your choice!

Why Court stopped coronation of new Ayangburen of Ikorodu

Justice Olabisi Ogungbesan of an Ikeja High Court yesterday put on hold the ongoing coronation ceremony of the Ayangburen of Ikorodu Kingdom, Oba Kabiru Shotebi in Lagos State.

The Ayangburen stool became vacant on August 1, 2014 after the demise of Oba S.A.A. Oyefusi, following which the former Governor of Lagos StateM Raji Fashola, SAN, announced Shotebi as the new Ayangburen.


Kabir Adewale Shotobi

Already, the ceremony to crown the new Ayangburen, had been slated for today. however Justice Ogungbesan held that the programme should be suspended “in the interest of justice.”

According to the Judge, she was satisfied from the evidence placed before the court that unquantifiable damages would be done if the coronation ceremony was allowed to go on as scheduled.

To this end, the court restrained the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, or “anyone acting under his authority, from going ahead on Saturday to crown the current Odofin of Ikorodu, Chief Kabiru Shotebi, as the new Ayangburen of Ikorodu Kingdom.”

The judge also stopped Shotebi from either “presenting himself for coronation” or “parading himself as the Ayangburen of Ikorodu, or actualising any recognition thereon as such, or exercising any of the Ayangburen royal functions”, pending the determination of a suit filed by one Odupitan Eniola, from the Lambo branch of the Lasunwon chieftaincy family of Ikorodu Kingdom.

Joined as respondents in the suit are: Shotebi; the Olisa/Regent of Ikorodu, Chief Zacheus Odusoga; and other kingnakers of Ikorodu Kingdom – Chief Afolabi Adekanyaoja, Chief Karimu Ore and Chief Jacob Adaraloye.

Others were the Ikorodu Local Government, the Ikorodu Division of Council of Obas/Chiefs, the Secretary, Ikorodu Chieftaincy Committee, the Lagos State Ministry of Chieftaincy Affairs, the Attorney General of Lagos and Lagos State Governor.

Shotebi in the suit, through his lawyer, Mr. Joseph Okobiemen, had approached the court with an ex parte application praying the court to halt the scheduled coronation of Shotebi, who hailed from the Adegorushe branch of the Lasunwon chieftaincy family, as the new Ayangburen of Ikorodu Kingdom.

The applicant claimed that it was the turn of the Lambo branch of the Lasunwon chieftaincy family, from which he came from, to present the next Ayangburen, adding that he had been nominated by the family to be crowned as the new Ayangburen at meetings held on September 7 and 21, 2014.

He claimed that the Adegorushe family had already benefited after Shotebi became the Odofin of Ikorodu kindgom, following a court judgment delivered on April 1, 2009 in a suit marked IKD/57/2007.

Besides, Eniola he averred that there was a case pending in court bordering on a dispute over the vacant stool, saying that if the coronation ceremony was allowed to go on, it will foist “a fait accompli on the honourable court.”

“The 1st respondent is making plans, during the pendency of this suit and in concert with other respondents, to organise a coronation ceremony, which is now in the advanced stage, to crown the first respondent as the Ayangburen of Ikorodu Kingdom, in a ceremony which has been scheduled to hold between 2nd and 15th August, 2015. This is in spite of this suit pending before this honourable court.

“The claimant wants the honourable court to exercise its discretion in favour of the claimant by granting this application, so as to preserve the order and judgment of this honourable court made in suit number IKD/57/2007.

“The balance of convenience is on the claimant’s side and the claimant will suffer more if the respondents are allowed to continue their acts of flagrant disregard for the orders, judgment and suits pending before the honourable court.

“I undertake to pay damages to the respondents if this application is wrongly granted,” one Prince Shakiru Shodipo, a principal member of the Lambo branch, averred in an affidavit of urgency.”

Justice Ogungbesan, in her ruling held she found merit in Eniola’s application and therefore stopped Shotebi’s coronation as prayed.

The judge directed that the order should be served on the respondents within five days, while adjourned the motion on notice till August 26, 2014 for mention.

How I cheated death 12 times – Obasanjo

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo exhibiting soccer skills to celebrate 78th birthday

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has given insight into how he has so far escaped death by the whiskers at least a dozen times in his 78-year stay on earth.

In his latest three-volume autobiography, “My Watch”, Mr. Obasanjo wrote about how he survived infant mortality that consumed all but one of his siblings, how local herbs and concoction helped kept him alive after a life-threatening scorpion bite, and how he almost perished in the Ogun River while learning to swim.

The former president, who recently spoke to PREMIUM TIMES about the book, also narrated how he escaped unhurt in several auto crashes, and how he survived a plot by suspected assassins to kill him at the University of Ibadan.

Mr. Obasanjo narrated, “Being one of two of my mother’s surviving children (out of seven), I must have had the grace of God to cross the hurdle of infant mortality. The other five never lived up to age one. The vicissitudes of rural life and limited resources did not guarantee survival for children born in my time and in the place I was born. Growing up in the village I was bitten by a scorpion once, and I survived it. The local herb and concoction applied by the native doctor worked in my case. I heard later that it did not work in some other cases.


My Watch, Obasanjo

“When I was in primary school in Abeokuta, I went to the Ogun River to try to swim. My friend and classmate who went with me urged me to dive with him into the water; I asked him to go in first and I would follow. He dived in and hit his head against a rock, and he never survived. My mother pulled my ear and warned me never to go to the river for swimming again. That marked the end of my attempt to learn swimming.

“When I was attached to the Welsh Guards in Pirbright, I had an accident while learning to drive. It could have been fatal for me and and for the oncoming motorcyclist, but we both survived. On returning to Nigeria, I had another accident in which the military vehicle I was driving without proper authority was a write-off. I survived with a fractured hand. As a young officer on a UN Peacekeeping Mission in the Congo Leopoldville, now Democratic Republic of Congo, I had an encounter with Congolese soldiers that could have been fatal.

“I returned home from the Congo and was posted to the Nigerian Army Engineers, where I had to learn to ride a motorcycle for reconnaissance purposes. I took a motorcycle ride out alone on training and had a nasty accident where, again, the motorcycle was damaged beyond repair, and I was saved by wearing a steel helmet. The story of my escaping death by the skin of my teeth during the civil war when four of my bodyguards died on the spot has been told elsewhere.

“When I left public office as a military head of state, I was appointed Distinguished Fellow of the University of Ibadan in the Institute of African Studies. I was given a house to stay in when I had work in the university. On one occasion, I was to give a lecture and to spend the night there; but curiously, I decided to inspect the whole building and the compound. I found, to everybody’s surprise, a neat hole cut through the glass window; and on the mosquito wire netting on the window was a hole close to the head of the bead, just big enough to accommodate the muzzle of a pistol. I never slept in that house again. The whole university community, and Professor Tekena Tamuno as the vice-chancellor, was alarmed.

“On my way from Abeokuta to Ogbomosho to attend the graduation ceremony of pastor Bolarinwa, who I sponsored to Baptist Theological Seminary, I was waylaid by armed robbers. They cut in front of my car to stop it, got out and shot into the air, and entered their car and drove off. Calmly, I got out of the car with my driver and other passengers. I came to understand that if they had known that I had been the one in the car, they would not have zeroed in on that car, or they would have killed me to avoid getting arrested. I also understood that the police followed them to a logical conclusion. In addition, I have heard all sorts of fetish stories about how people tried or were trying to kill me and how I escaped through supernatural powers. I neither believe in nor practice anything fetish.

“My greatest escape from untimely death was brought about through the machinations and snares of Abacha. Even that was God’s doing.”

Mr. Obasanjo said because of his several close shaves with death, people built a myth around him, circulating tales that he was more than an ordinary human being.

“Once, a writer described me as a man with seven lives,” the former President said. “That is, of course, an exaggeration; there is no man with more than one life. But when you have almost miraculously escaped death on a number of occasions, superstitions and myths are built around you. One might even be credited with powers that do not belong to one. For instance, being called ‘ebora’, which means spirit.”

Saying he does not believe or indulge in fetish practices, Mr. Obasanjo said he had remained alive till now simply because of God’s consistence generosity to him, a debt he said he would continue to pay by “thanking and worshipping God while placing myself unreservedly in the service of humanity and God”.

“In my opinion, to whom much is given, much must be expected. God has done so much to preserve my life and protect me,” the former President said.

“He has done so much to pave my way and crown my efforts with success. Bishop Hassan Kukah put it this way: “God has singled you out and has been overgenerous to you.” I agree with him. And I have nothing o do excerpt to keep thanking and worshipping God while placing myself unreservedly in the service of humanity and God, continuously on the watch. It is leadership and responsibility.”

Breaking: Borno State Deputy Governor, Zannah Umar Mustapha is dead.

Zanna

According to reports, Zannah was said to have died in his hotel room in Yola and his remains had been taken to the Federal Medical Hospital, Yola..


Speaker, House of representative, Hon. Yakubu Dogara has described the demise of Zannah as a huge loss to the state and Nigeria at large.

David Oyelowo: 'I am the new James Bond'

Oyelowo says: 'UK films are told through the eyes of white characters, by white directors, with a white point of view'

After appearing as Martin Luther King to much acclaim in the film Selma, Oyelowo, 39, will portray 007 and other characters in a recording of Trigger Mortis, a new Bond novel by Anthony Horowitz, the Guardian reported.

“I was asked specifically by the [original author Ian] Fleming estate, which is really special,” he said.

“I am officially the only person on planet Earth who can legitimately say ‘I am the new James Bond’… even saying that name is the cinematic equivalent of doing the ‘to be or not to be’ speech.”

He has form in playing a British security service agent, starring as MI5 officer Danny Hunter in Spooks, the BBC spy drama.

However Oyelowo said another black British actor, Idris Elba, was “ripe” for the screen role of Bond.

Idris Elba is tipped to play Bond on the big screen

Elba, who first found fame after moving to the US to appear in the acclaimed crime drama The Wire, was “a titan on screen, he has all the qualities that you’d want in a James Bond”, Oyelowo said.

“Because films and TV affect culture, a black Bond would be a cultural event, a statement, beyond just entertainment,” he added.

Oyelowo appeared as Henry VI in the Royal Shakespeare Company, a casting decision that was criticised because of the colour of his skin.

“[One academic] said that we open ourselves to ridicule if we allow black people to play English kings when English kings have never been black. But I’ve never seen an Egyptian play Cleopatra,” Oyelowo said.

He was also sent hate mail along the lines of “how dare you enter a realm that is not yours to enter?”

The actor, who now lives in Los Angeles, said: “It’s upsetting. I had letters coming through to the stage door. This was over 10 years ago now, so you’d hope that wouldn’t be the case now.”

Update: Oyelowo won't be the first black actor to play Bond, that was Hugh Quarshie when he read the audiobook version of Dr No in 2012.

Lagos: Tinubu/Fashola crisis deepens

Tinubu and Fashola

The crisis between two ex-governors of Lagos State, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Mr Babatunde Fashola deepened on Friday with reports that loyalists of both gladiators have drawn up battle plans, even as stakeholders in both the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Lagos State are said to have waded in, calling for a truce.

A former member of the Lagos State Executive Council who did not want to be named, told Saturday Tribune on Friday that “some elders are planning a peace meeting between the duo.”

Investigations revealed that forces loyal to Tinubu felt incensed by the statement issued by Fashola on Thursday in which he insinuated that corruption allegations were being pinned on him by those opposed to his getting a federal appointment, a veiled reference to Tinubu and the incumbent governor, Akinwumi Ambode.

“The coming days will be interesting,” an aide to a chieftain of the APC close to both leaders told Saturday Tribune on Friday.

While the Tinubu camp is said to have vowed to fight on, “ to teach the former governor a lesson,” the Fashola side of the divide, according to a source, “is determined to ensure that his integrity is not tainted by those who are jealous of his ascendancy in the polity.”

Both sides, however, on Friday refrained from taking direct shots at each other. Tinubu’s spokesman, Mr Sunday Dare told Saturday Tribune when contacted by phone on Friday afternoon that he had just arrived in the country and would need time to get briefings from his boss before reacting to the statement from Fashola while Ambode’s Chief Press Secretary, Habib Aruna did not answer repeated calls made to his telephone line.


Dare later sent a text message at 6:30pm that he would call back soon. He did not.

However, an aide of Ambode who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Saturday Tribune that it was too simplistic for anybody to think that the government, headed by Ambode, was behind the ongoing corruption charge campaign against former Governor Fashola in order to rubbish his record of achievements while in office for eight years.

“Ambode is not interested in the smear campaign against Fashola, it is a non- issue. It is too simplistic to suggest that, it is left for people to find out who is doing this. I can tell you that government is not involved. It is not possible for government to have a hand in that.

“The governor is a pragmatic person and ready to move on by restructuring the state,” the close source said.

Fashola is currently in the eye of the storm as a group, Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders (CACOL), has dragged him before the anti- graft agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), calling for his investigation on an alleged scam over a contract for the upgrade of his personal website at a cost of N78million.

The former governor, has, however, set the record straight, declaring that the state government, through the procurement office, did not disclose the details of the website upgrade to include some other aspects making up the entire contracts sum.

Fashola, who denied having children outside wedlock apart from the three he adopted following the DANA plane crash, also denied involvement in the National Assembly crisis, saying that he only landed in the country on the day of the crisis.

This is as Saturday Tribune learnt that Fashola, who served for eight years as governor, might have incurred the wrath of a lot of people within the APC and outside it, some of who felt he was “too arrogant” and now wanted to take their own pound of flesh.

Other sources said Tinubu is determined to block the chances of Fashola from becoming a minister in the yet- to- be formed cabinet of President Muhammadu Buhari due to his alleged “new found independence.”

This, according to a source, might have prompted Fashola to declare in his published statement that he was not looking for a job, stressing that “For those who still wish to remain in the mud, they should look in the mirror. For those who wish to throw mud at me, they should look at their own hands. As for me, I have moved on. My job is done,” even as he threw a broadside at his opponents that, “When you wrestle with a pig, the pig gets happy and you get dirty.”

Another source even disclosed that “Tinubu’s supporters could even be the ones fighting back because of the perceived ill- treatment Tinubu suffered at the hands of Fashola while he was governor of the state.”


Source: tribuneonlineng